[jax]

Quote:

A call out to WA22 owners...... if anybody would be kind enough to help.   I started to get curious about why there is no Black Gate parts upgrade package for the WA22 when there exists one for both the WA6SE and the WA5.  If anybody has been inside their amp could you possibly let me know what parts are in use for the capacitors and resistors?  If they are Rubycons like the stock WA6 then I'd definitely have to talk to Jack about doing a bit of customizing to swap a few out for Mundorfs or Sonicaps when the time comes to order mine.  If Jack is using something good already like the Auricaps that are inside the WES then it would make sense that there is no upgrade option.

I don't know how active he is anymore, but Seamaster had his WA22 modified (re-capped) by Dan Wright (Modwright Instruments).  I heard that amp at a local meet and it sounded outstanding, but then I never heard it in the stock version.  He seemed pleased, but I have not heard much here from him and I don't frequent the forums that much.  You might try sending him a PM to see if he's still happy with the mod.  Dan used Modwright proprietary caps AFAIK.  I believe he priced out the mod at around $800 if I recall.

 

[grokit]

I rolled in my EML 5U4G today, what a beaut. It was great right out of the box and then started to sound well, not as good. How long do they take to settle down/burn in generally? 
 
TubesUSA charged me $30 for $13 worth of postage (including insurance); I was surprised after I tried to see what the deal was with a $38 shipping fee:
 
"[size=small]The brunt of the amount is via Paypal fees(3.5%), but I also only ship with insurance. This costs more, but the end user is protected against shipping damages.[/size]
 
[size=x-small]Best,[/size]
 
[size=x-small]George[/size]
 
[size=x-small]230.00 tube[/size]
[size=x-small]    8.05 Paypal fee[/size]
[size=x-small]   30.00 shipping w/insurance for 300.00[/size]
 
[size=x-small]268.05 total"[/size]
 
The $13 postage label makes him a bit of an opportunist in my book. It took 10 days to reach me but that includes weekends so I'm okay with that. He should have gone with express postage for what I paid or charged me less though.
 
edit: toned down a bit as I have calmed down a bit.

 

[jax]

I've dealt with George before, as have a few of my friends and acquaintances and he certainly has always occurred to me as a man of integrity who offers some fine products and stands behind them, so your comment really surprises me.  I'd try checking in with him
 
Regarding burn-in - I'd give it a few hundred hours.  It will go through some fluctuations during that time, as I recall, but I didn't find the swings to be so dramatic as Black Treasures, for instance.  It's a damn fine rectifier for sure. 

 

[grokit]

I was a bit upset when I saw the $13.00 right on the label after that email exchange. As I said, the postage label included insurance, I checked the price online to make sure. This was just Priority Mail within the USA, a 1lb. 8oz. box between our zip codes goes for $12.95 if paid in person, including $200 worth of insurance.
 
Maybe he is milking the demand and marking up the postage excessively because he can't mark up the tube by dealer agreement. I understand that he has to gasp-mail the package, but almost all other retailers absorb credit card/paypal fees etc., he is getting list price for the tube after all.
 
George needs to learn how to print postage labels from online with "stealth" pricing, that would help avoid reactions like this 

 

[jax]

Quote:

I had already edited/toned the liar/thief part down while you were typing evidently. I was just a bit upset ATM when I saw the $13.00 right on the label after that email exchange.
 
And you're right, it's TubesUSA, not the TubeStore, I will edit again 

George is a stand-up guy, as far as I've been able to judge - you might want to check in with him on that - it could have been an honest mistake on someone's part, or the label may be misleading.  Having been a sole-proprietor most of my life I know first-hand what it takes to run small business, and if you don't charge for your time you will find survival a bit challenging.  Not to justify misleading others - but I just don't think that's what's going on here having dealt with George. 
 
I understand being upset about something like that - been there, done that.  I try to sleep on it or bounce it off others before doing anything I might regret the next day.   I'll edit my previous post and leave it at that.  Good luck and I hope the EML works out well for you!
 
 

 

[grokit]

When he quoted me the additional $38.05 over the cost of the tube just to mail it to me and process my payment, I did ask why it cost so much. What I quoted is what he replied with. Maybe he can't meet demand or maybe he's getting a raw deal from Emission Labs, who knows. All that I do know is $13 + $8 = $21 and no other retailer even charges PayPal fees.
 
I am not the only one that takes exception to this, I posted when I ordered and got this reply, "There's gotta be a better place, or another place to get some EML.  The shipping from george to Canada was 40usd for one tube."
 
Of course there are differing opinions, "Your lucky George didn't tell you to forget it. My pair came in a box about twice the size as the box my WA6SE came in, and yes I paid the extra $25 and thanked him for the prompt shipping."
 
Anyways I did call him on it, he told me $30 and I paid anyways so I made my choice. George was able to get 110% markup on shipping so that's what he did. If he had any competition he would have to change his ways though.

 

[dminches]

Quote:

Dimmers are notorious for adding buzz or hum on the AC lines. Try turning any dimmers you may have all the way off.

I know that well from trying to get distant AM radio stations on a radio located anywhere near a dimmer.  Cheap walwarts can also cause power line noise.

 

[Clayton SF]

Quote:

Guys, my WA2 hams when connected to the main A/V system as a pre at any volume, but is fine when listening through headphones. When I lift the ground by using a two prong power cable, hum disappears. Is this a typical grounding issue? Is there any harm in running WA2 without ground?
 
I actually want to comment on how quite WA2 are though the headphones, the noise floor on this amp is amazing.
 
On a negative side, I have a small cosmetic defect (scratch) on my WA2. Has anyone else got any blemishes on their new Woo amps or am I the only lucky one. It's small enough that I feel silly that I'm bothered by it, but by the same talking it bugs me. 

I also have a scratch on my WA2. It's on lid of the middle "box" situated behind the 6922 tubes. It used to bug me but not anymore. But what bugs me a little is that I hear a static-type sound when switch from one detent to the next on my stepped attenuator. Does anyone else experience that?

 

[RTF]

I'm happy to say I'll be joining the club with an incoming WA6. I have a few beginner questions that I'm sure have been asked/answered 100 times but...I'm going for a more 'tubey' sound so I'm going to try a Sylvania 5931 plus some RCA 6ew7's big bottle. Am I on the right track with those tubes? Edit: and I was also wondering, I'm not sure what they're called, but where do you get those tube cooling rings? I've looked around but can't seem to find them. Thanks

 

[jc9394]

Quote:

A call out to WA22 owners...... if anybody would be kind enough to help.   I started to get curious about why there is no Black Gate parts upgrade package for the WA22 when there exists one for both the WA6SE and the WA5.  If anybody has been inside their amp could you possibly let me know what parts are in use for the capacitors and resistors?  If they are Rubycons like the stock WA6 then I'd definitely have to talk to Jack about doing a bit of customizing to swap a few out for Mundorfs or Sonicaps when the time comes to order mine.  If Jack is using something good already like the Auricaps that are inside the WES then it would make sense that there is no upgrade option.

The last time I inquire the BG options on the WA22, Jack told me it is extremely difficult to get the parts required for WA22.  The options for both WA6SE and WA5 is that he still have the BGs for them in stock.  That said, it is still able to get the parts to upgrade it yourself but it probably have to go to few different sources to obtain all the parts.]
 
Here are the list of parts that is in my WA22...
 
1/ BlackGate NH 220uf/160V - x6                        
2/ RMG 470Ω resistor - x2                                         
3/ RMG 220KΩ  resistors - x 4                                 
4/ V-Cap CuTF 0.22uf/300V- x4                          
5/ BlackGate NH 150uf/350 - x3                          
6/ Mills MR-200 30.1k resistors - x4   
 
Optional:                    
7/ Gold plated Japan made selector                     
8/ Mundrof Silver Gold 0.5mm &1mm cable          

 

[kchew]

 
Quote:

A call out to WA22 owners...... if anybody would be kind enough to help.   I started to get curious about why there is no Black Gate parts upgrade package for the WA22 when there exists one for both the WA6SE and the WA5.  If anybody has been inside their amp could you possibly let me know what parts are in use for the capacitors and resistors?  If they are Rubycons like the stock WA6 then I'd definitely have to talk to Jack about doing a bit of customizing to swap a few out for Mundorfs or Sonicaps when the time comes to order mine.  If Jack is using something good already like the Auricaps that are inside the WES then it would make sense that there is no upgrade option.

Seamaster posted pictures of the stock WA22 internals here: http://www.head-fi.org/forum/thread/451678/wa22-let-s-roll-some-tubes-done-mod-burnning-in/330#post_6438909
I can't recognise what caps they are though, anyone here can identify them?
 
I guess if you really want a caps upgrade, you can provide Jack with the parts as jc9394 mentioned. I did something similar by providing Jack with Mundorf silver/gold wiring and Furutech rhodium IEC inlet for my amp. I know a guy in my area who supposedly specializes in modifying tube amps and stocks Blackgates and Mundorf caps, but I'm a little wary of trusting people other than Jack to modify my WA22.

 

[jc9394]

Quote:

I'm happy to say I'll be joining the club with an incoming WA6. I have a few beginner questions that I'm sure have been asked/answered 100 times but...I'm going for a more 'tubey' sound so I'm going to try a Sylvania 5931 plus some RCA 6ew7's big bottle. Am I on the right track with those tubes? Edit: and I was also wondering, I'm not sure what they're called, but where do you get those tube cooling rings? I've looked around but can't seem to find them. Thanks

Welcome to the club, the tubiest I heard is Mullard GZ34 with Sylvania 6EW7. 
 
Are these you are talking about?
 
http://www.audiotubes.com/damper.htm

 

[RTF]

Thanks for the welcome jc9394.  And I'll be sure to check out those tubes.
 
No those aren't quite what I'm looking for, I'll try to find a pic of the kind I mean somewhere in this thread.
 
Quote:

Quote:

I'm happy to say I'll be joining the club with an incoming WA6. I have a few beginner questions that I'm sure have been asked/answered 100 times but...I'm going for a more 'tubey' sound so I'm going to try a Sylvania 5931 plus some RCA 6ew7's big bottle. Am I on the right track with those tubes? Edit: and I was also wondering, I'm not sure what they're called, but where do you get those tube cooling rings? I've looked around but can't seem to find them. Thanks

Welcome to the club, the tubiest I heard is Mullard GZ34 with Sylvania 6EW7. 
 
Are these you are talking about?
 
http://www.audiotubes.com/damper.htm

 

[jc9394]

These?  I found them not that much useful.
 
http://www.audioconnect.com/html/tube_dampers.html
 
 
Quote:

Thanks for the welcome jc9394.  And I'll be sure to check out those tubes.
 
No those aren't quite what I'm looking for, I'll try to find a pic of the kind I mean somewhere in this thread.

 

[mikemalter]

Quote:

When he quoted me the additional $38.05 over the cost of the tube just to mail it to me and process my payment, I did ask why it cost so much. What I quoted is what he replied with. Maybe he can't meet demand or maybe he's getting a raw deal from Emission Labs, who knows. All that I do know is $13 + $8 = $21 and no other retailer even charges PayPal fees.
 
I am not the only one that takes exception to this, I posted when I ordered and got this reply, "There's gotta be a better place, or another place to get some EML.  The shipping from george to Canada was 40usd for one tube."
 
Of course there are differing opinions, "Your lucky George didn't tell you to forget it. My pair came in a box about twice the size as the box my WA6SE came in, and yes I paid the extra $25 and thanked him for the prompt shipping."
 
Anyways I did call him on it, he told me $30 and I paid anyways so I made my choice. George was able to get 110% markup on shipping so that's what he did. If he had any competition he would have to change his ways though.

I agree.  When there is no competition then vendors can charge what they want.  Well, you know what they say, you forget the price long after but still have the quality.